Legacy of Saltrian
by CreatorZorah
Summary: Hermione Granger didn't want to live in the world where everyone dear to her was dead. She travels back in time, but unfortunately ends up in a body not her own. Time Travel.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **Just something I was dreaming about the last night. It was a bloody awesome vivid dream! Who the hell needs movies?

**Summary:** Hermione Granger didn't want to live in the world where everyone dear to hear were dead. She travels back in time, but unfortunately ends up in a body not her own.

**Disclaimer.** I own nothing.

**LEGACY OF SALTRIAN**

_by CreatorZorah_

**Chapter 1**

It was an old shabby building located in a small village in the middle of nowhere. A large once beautiful garden in front of it was hopelessly overgrown and unkempt. There were rumors that a scary old hag was living there. Some people were claiming that they had seen the hag. Merciless parents would even use the hag as a boogeyman. No-one really knew much about the building and the hag who lived there.

But the hag wasn't a hag. She was a human and many would be surprised to find that she lived there in such conditions. She was famous and didn't lack money. Neither was she very old for her kind. If she'd cared enough about her look, the woman would still be able to break a few hearts.

Her name was Hermione Granger and she was famous for defeating a dark wizard, who had been terrorizing the magical kind for many years. She was a hero of the wizarding world, but nobody knew where she had vanished to after her triumph. It's been twenty years since then, and she had been working stubbornly on her project. Today her hard work paid off. She was ready to perform the spell.

But a few words and wand waves away from her goal, Hermione was hesitating. She knew that there wasn't much time, it was the best chance to perform the spell. However she wasn't sure about consequences. Would the spell cause time to branch or will it completely destroy this version of future? What would happen to those who would stay in this time? Hermione took a deep breath. She was going to get back in time no matter what, because she didn't want to live in the world, where everyone dear to her were dead. A few moments later she waved her wand and uttered the incantation.

* * *

The Janus Thickey Ward of St. Mungo was a relatively quiet place. There weren't many patients, and the vast majority was way too damaged to cause any commotion. Nine of them would never wake up again. At least that was what healers believed, because the reality was going to prove them wrong. For a moment healers were confused as to why would they hear this particular alarm. The alarm that announced the awakening of one of the long term patienten.

"Are you sure she's really waking up?" one of the healers asked when they gathered in the tiny room around the bed.

"Let's see," the other said, using a spell to determine if the patient in question was in a deep magical coma. The tip of his wand glowed a bright green colour and she smiled. "She's definitely on her way to the world of living."

"Who is she anyway?" a young female healer asked.

"She's the most famous patient of this ward, Jenny," the older man answered.

"Really? And why is that so?" Jenny asked.

"She's our oldest patient. Taken to the ward in 1945..."

"You've got to be kidding me, James!" Jenny interrupted him. "She most certainly doesn't look like she's past her fifties."

James smiled. "That's the reason why she is famous. According to our diagnostic spells she stopped aging when she was twenty."

"How is that possible?" Jenny asked. "And who is she?"

"No-one knows how," another healer answered. "We'll have to ask her once she's awake."

"As for your other question," James said. "She's Elisabeth Saltrian, the last known member of the ancient German House. They were a lot like our Blacks. Elisabeth was found unconscious on the battlefield in France during the global wizarding war."

Jenny gulped. "Did she fight for Grindelwald then?"

"Ted thinks she did," James said.

"It's just a theory, her whole family fought for Grindelwald, I doubt she's an exception," the healer said. "But I'm mostly interested in her body."

"Oh? Her body?" James teased with a grin.

"James! You bloody troll. That's not what I mean. Her ever-young body can't be natural. Must be some Dark Magic..."

"You don't know that," James argued. "For all we know she could be cursed."

"Perhaps. "

"Why is she here then and not in France or, well, Germany?" Jenny asked looking at James.

James snickered. "Ted is here the expert. Knows all about the sleeping beauty."

Jenny raised an eyebrow. "The expert?" she teased "Does Andi know about it?"

"Not you too... Shut up, Jenny," Ted said and frowned. "She is awake, I think. James, talk to her, you know German."

"Eh...Right," James muttered. "Fräulein Saltrian, können du mir hören?"

* * *

Hermione knew that something went wrong the moment she was flooded with completely foreign memories. Fortunately she was a very good Occlumens and was able to sort through the chaos of flashbacks. Apparently, instead of getting back into her younger self, Hermione's host was Elisabeth Saltrian.

_Eight years old Elisabeth laughed as she ran through the hallways of the ancient castle. She wouldn't dare to run so carelessly in the dim lights of the magical lanterns at night, but in the broad daylight, it was her favorite place._

"_Alohomora," she whispered, opening a door._

"_Elisabeth!"_

_She grinned at the furious voice of her older sister and ran out of the door to the balcony, where she cast a minor sticking charm on her shoes and climbed up the wall to the tower's roof. Her mother would whip her if she'd seen her daughter on the roof of the tallest tower of their ancestral castle. But the view from there was breathtaking and it was nice to sit there and watch at the people of Saltrianta._

She had been a follower of Gellert Grindelwald and not just any, Elisabeth was one of the best soldiers at his command. But that wasn't the main problem. The last memory dated with 1944 and that was a problem, because she didn't want to destroy the timeline. She wanted to meet Harry, Ron, and everyone else. That aside the host's memories contained too much of the Dark Arts for Hermione's liking. But the host's Hunger was absolutely the worst. It was unbearable, like being tortured with a milder version of the Cruciatus Curse.

"Shut up, Jenny," someone said. The voice was familiar. "She is awake, I think. James, talk to her, you know German."

"Eh... Right... Fräulein Saltrian, können du mir hören?"

She wanted to eat them. It was almost impossible to fight the urge. If not for Occlumency, she would suck the people dry the very next moment. However, her will was stronger than that. Hermione fought the host's urges and won the battle... for now. Hermione knew that she would need to eat someone if she didn't want to go into a feeding frenzy.

They spoke English. That was a good sign. Hermione opened her eyes slowly. The light was very bright, but her eyes were adjusting fast. Soon she saw two men and a woman who were looking at her. And one of them she recognized instantly. Ted Tonks. The right time, but the wrong host. She could end up in her own body or in the body of her close magical relative. However Hermione wasn't aware that she had any magical relatives. Consequently, she wasn't a muggleborn at all. What the hell?

"Fräulein Saltrian?" Fräulein. Hermione struggled to not grin. A two-hundred-years-old, thrice-married thrice-widowed Fräulein.

"You may speak English," Hermione said with a smile and thought, 'Because your German is horrible.'

It was difficult to talk. She tried to move her arms and legs, but she was too weak. A very strange feeling, the body didn't feel like her own. Well, the body hadn't been her own. Now, however, she had to adjust.

"Oh, very well, Miss Saltrian. I'm Healer James Davis and these are my colleagues Jenny McDowell and Ted Tonks. How are you feeling?"

"Weak," she answered.

"That's to be expected, but you'll get better. Would you answer a few silly questions?"

Hermione smiled. "Yes."

"Do you remember your name?"

"Elisabeth."

"Good. And how about your birthday?"

She hesitated. The host was ancient, but she wasn't sure if the healers knew it. She decided to tell the truth. "Sixteenth July, 1812." Hermione nearly cursed when she saw how her answer affected the healers. They were bloody shocked. They didn't know and she could have just lied.

"Are you sure?" James asked. "It's just you look... young."

"I'm sure. Born to Marie Saltrian née Gauti and Wilhelm Saltrian."

"It looks good," Ted said. "The date and names are adding up."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. Good that she hadn't lied. "And how do you know that?"

"Well," he muttered blushing. "We knew only your name. I was curious and studied some documents which mention your family."

It was getting more and more difficult to fight the Hunger. She decided to hasten the conversation. "How long I was out?"

"You... were in a magical coma for forty eight years. I'm sorry." So the date was right, and her calculations weren't wrong. Good.

"Well, I'm still alive," she said smiling.

Ted continued, "May I ask you what the last thing you remember?"

_Elisabeth was standing on the cliff edge, her long black hair was streaming on the wind as she looked at the muggle ships moving towards the coast. The continent was carefully warded to make apparition without authorization very dangerous, portkeying impossible. Usage of brooms and flying carpets was very restricted too. The invading wizards were forced to come with muggles using these crude vessels._

_She raised her wand and closed her eyes. The hottest fire was born at the tip of her wand and streamed down to the ships. It was growing larger, fiercer; heads of various creatures began to form out of the fire, getting closer to the allied forces. They tried to shield themselves... in vain. Fiendfyre consumed dozens of vessels and she was still feeding the demonic fire with her magic. Suddenly she sensed a danger, but too late. A curse hit her in the back. Traitors..._

Hermione frowned. It would be difficult to deal with her host's memories. Hermione wasn't sure who was worse, her host or Voldemort. The later didn't drain other wizards of their life force, magic and didn't consume their souls. The host's curse, 'thanks' to her succubus grandmother. She couldn't live without taking lives. Why this host?! Bloody horrible. Disgusting. On the other hand the host had been sane unlike Voldemort. Elisabeth had been an outstanding soldier, not a crazed maniac.

There was no reason to lie. Hermione knew that she wouldn't be tried just like the most pure-blood families who had followed Grindelwald. Unless they knew that she was a succubus half-breed, she had nothing to worry about. And Hermione doubted that anyone could identify her as such. Succubus half-breeds were extremely rare, maybe unique even. It was difficult to have an intercourse with a succubus without being eaten in process. The host's grandfather had guts to trust a succubus that claimed to be in love with him.

"I fought against allied forces in Normandy," she answered causing Jenny to take a step back. "Am I a prisoner?"

"No, of course not. The war is over, it's been forty seven years since then."

"I take it, your side has won?"

"Yes," Ted answered simply.

"What a shame," Hermione said with a sigh. "If I'm not a prisoner, may I leave then?"

"We would like you to stay until tomorrow. It's not everyday a comatose patient wakes up after almost fifty years. You need to regain your strength. Then there are a few formalities to sort out and arrange before you may discharge yourself. Do you wish us to inform the German Ministry about your recovery?"

Hermione nodded. "I'd appreciate it. By the way, why wasn't I transferred to Germany?"

"Germany doesn't have the same policy of keeping comatose patients alive for periods longer than ten years. But they didn't wish to lose the last Saltrian."

"Makes sense," Hermione said trying to not yawn. "I'm tired. Being sleepy after fifty-years-long sleep."

"It's perfectly normal," James reassured her and handed her a phial filled with a green liquid. "Please drink the potion. It'll restore your strength while you're sleeping."

"Thank you," she said and drank the potion.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: couldn't decide if I should write the dialogues of this chapter in German, but decided against it. I'll use _italics _for German and flashbacks.

Thanks for reading :)

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing.

* * *

**LEGACY OF SALTRIAN**

_by CreatorZorah_

**Chapter 2**

_It was a cold night of fullmoon. It was a few hours past the curfew and all students had to be in their beds, but the disturbance in the flow of ambient magic grabbed her attention. It was something powerful and dangerous and she had to ensure that the students were safe. Elisabeth strode through the dark hallways of Durmstrang with a wand in her hand ready to battle whatever caused the disturbance._

_With a flick of her wrist she sent a burst of raw magic to open the door and froze at the sight she didn't expect. Five students lay on the cold floor, their bodies were placed over the edges of a pentagram. They were alive if only barely. But stable nonetheless. In the middle stood a blond-haired student. He noticed her and took a step back; he looked lost and scared._

"_Professor Saltrian... it... wasn't my intention to harm them," he said with a shaky voice. _

"_I told you that the Dark Arts shouldn't be taken lightly," she said with a sigh, entering the room._

"_It's just a mistake... I can fix it, Professor."_

"_It's too late, Gellert. I'm not the only one who sensed the dark magic..."_

Hermione woke up with a start. It was disturbing to have memories of a person who had taught Gellert Grindelwald. Elisabeth had been very disappointed by Gellert's lack of patience. He had been the most promising student, her favorite student and he had gotten himself expelled because of his foolish experiments. Elisabeth had failed to protect him, but she had convinced the Headmaster to let Gellert keep his wand and magic. She had known that he would grow into a powerful wizard.

Hermione felt better than yesterday, but her hunger grew stronger. She stood up and opened the wardrobe that contained numerous dresses and robes. Some of them were made of acromantula silk. Hermione scowled. When she had been spending two weeks in St Mungo's there hadn't been anything in her room. Not even a wardrobe. But, of course, the Saltrians were a rich pure-blood family, while Hermione Granger was just a filthy mudblood. She wondered how the Saltrians were related to her.

Hermione sighed and looked out the window. It was warm enough to put a short dress on. Without giving much thought to what she was doing, she cast wandlessly a few simple hygiene charms and brushed her hair. But when she began looking for a dress to put on, she stopped in her tracks. Apparently the Elisabeth's body, or rather succubi blood, affected her personality. Hermione had never placed much value on appearance and fashion, but now she was almost instinctively trying to look as appealing as possible.

A few minutes later she looked in the mirror and smiled. Unlike her own untamable brown hair, Elisabeth was an owner of black currently waist-long, slightly wavy hair. A pair of dark brown with a hint of red eyes were looking at her from the mirror. Her host was a striking beauty. Hermione's smile faded as she thought about the downside.

There was a reason why she looked like this. To attract her prey. Even more unnerving was the fact that her abilities were very difficult to control. Elisabeth had eaten four lovers including two of her husbands. Accidently. It just tended to happen when sexually aroused... or angered. Hermione had to admit, however, that the two ex-husbands had deserved it by being arseholes. Still, relationships and this body weren't compatible.

Just a few minutes later someone knocked on her door and she allowed the one to enter. Turned out if was Ted Tonks and James... James... Doe. No idea what his last name was. The men were struggling to keep their eyes away from Hermione's curves and shapes, legs in particular.

"Good morning, Ms Saltrian," Ted said. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better," she answered.

"Good. Do you wish to meet the delegation from goblins and German Ministry?"

Hermione blinked. So soon? "Are they here?"

"Yes," James said. "Arrived as soon as we notified the Ministry."

"Lead the way then."

She followed the two healers through the hallways of the St. Mungo in silence. That gave her time to think about her plans. They were completely thwarted by ending up in the wrong host, however Elisabeth had lots of advantages over little Hermione. The blood status, her influence and money. An ability to use magic without bothering about underage restrictions was an additional bonus.

The goals were the same, but her assets had changed drastically. Hermione had to get into Hogwarts to exert influence upon young minds. Therefore she would have to apply for a job at Hogwarts. And the best post would be the Defence Against the Dark Arts. Hermione was sure that Voldemort's jinx wouldn't affect her. Magic would deem her superior to Voldemort due to his death at her wand.

Furthermore she could use her money and influence to release Sirius from Azkaban. Harry would be much happier with him than with the Dursleys. The thought about Dursleys made her blood boil. They had ruined Harry by making him think that his life was worthless. They were the reason why he had committed suicide when he had learned the reason Voldemort had been coming back again and again. She may have struck the killing blow, but his sacrifice had allowed her to kill the bastard once and for all.

The delegation were waiting for her in a large conference room. James followed her into the room, while Ted stayed behind. Hermione noticed Bartemius Crouch from the British Ministry, and two officials from the German Ministry, none of which looked familiar to her. Three goblins were sitting at the table sneering at the wizards.

"_Lady Saltrian of Saltrianta and Froskburg, it's a pleasure to see you well,_" one of the Germans said. "_I'm Dominik von Mayer and Anne Schmidt, Foreign Office of Wizarding Germany._"

Hermione smiled. At last someone decent enough to address her properly. Hermione had nothing against Ted and James, but the real Elisabeth would have turned them into a snack. A delicious snack, she had to admit. Damn you, succubi blood! On the other hand the political system in wizarding Germany was quite insane... just like the whole wizarding world.

"_Bartemius Crouch," _the elderly man introduced himself._ "Head of the British Department of International Magical Cooperation. And this is Crudok, Gringotts employee._"

Hermione nodded slightly and took the place at the head of the table. James sat to her left as the representative of St Mungo's.

"_The ministry was able to recover your wand, My Lady,_" Dominik said as a small wooden box appeared on the table before her.

Hermione hesitated, because she wasn't sure if the wand would work well for her. She opened the box and took the wand carefully. It felt warm and right. She breathed a sigh of relief. Made by Saltrian's wandmaker specially for her hundred seventy three years ago, when she was seven. Linden and her grandmother's heir.

"_Thank you,_" she said.

"_We need to confirm your identity," the goblin said suddenly. "And a signature to authorize the payment to St Mungo's._"

It was difficult to show no hesitation as she touched a piece of parchment with her wand. The goblin frowned, but nodded acknowledging that she indeed was Elisabeth Saltrian. Hermione had feared it wouldn't work and her magical signature wouldn't match Elisabeth's. But thankfully, everything seemed to be okay. The goblin handed her another parchment and a quill.

Hermione's eyes widened slightly as she read the parchment. Five Galleons a day?! Eighty seven thousand Galleons! For Hermione it would be an astronomical amount of money, but for Elisabeth the bill was insignificant. Using the host's memories she placed Elisabeth's signature on the parchment and returned it to Crudok.

"_Very well,_ _my business here is concluded,_" the goblin said and left without uttering another word.

"_Now that the goblin is gone we can continue our conversation,_" Dominik said. "_As you see, the relations with goblins are as hostile as always. We'd like to inform you about changes in the wizarding world you missed._"

Hermione smiled. "_I'd appreciate that._"

As it turned out the there weren't many changes to share. The wizarding world was simply too rigid to change seriously in only fifty years. And mostly Hermione was aware about news like Dumbledore defeating Grindelwald or him being the Supreme Magwump. She was bored.

"_The Ministries arranged a creation of an International Portkey_," Barty said.

"_It won't be necessary,_" Hermione said. "_I'm staying in Great Britain._"

"_Of course... what?_" Dominik choked. "_My Lady, are you transferring the House of Saltrian to Britain?_"

"_Of course not,_" she said. "_But I have an unfinished business here and I'll need a few years to deal with the matter._"

"_May I ask you what kind of unfinished business you have?_" Crouch asked.

"_I'm planning to reacquaintance with a few old friends,_" she said.

"_You surely don't mean..._"

"_Oh, nothing like that, of course." _She smiled slyly. _"The war is over and I don't hold any grudges against anyone._"

"_Well, we wish you to conclude your business successfully, My Lady,_" Dominik said.

"_I will inform the Minister that you wish to stay in Britain_," Barty said.

With that the meeting was finally over and she could apparate to the Diagon Alley. The Hunger was unbearable, but Hermione had to wait until the night to not get caught. She decided to find some criminal muggle who wouldn't be missed. Her mission was far more important than a life of some lowlife criminal, right? And she couldn't risk with killing a wizard. The wizarding world is a tight-knit community. Though the idea of consuming Malfoy's soul and life was very appealing. She shook her head. What the hell was she thinking?!

The rest of the day went a bit chaotic. She plunged herself into solving small problems to force the thoughts out of her mind. Her first stop was at Gringotts to get some gold. Then she bought a hooded robe against the wishes of her body, which desired to look appealing. Then she visited the Eeylops Owl Emporium to purchase an owl. She got a gorgeous Eagle-Owl, which she named Barney. And it wasn't her fault the owl liked the name.

The letter to Hogwarts was the last thing she managed to do before it was the time to go on her first hunt.

_Dear Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,_

_I couldn't resist the urge to write your full name. As you see I'm back, Albus. I was gone for fifty years, but the world around me is still mostly the same. Is Gellert still alive in Nurmengard? _

_A little bird told me the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher were vacant (once again, it appears). I'm willing to take it. I'm sure you're aware that you won't be able to find more capable teacher than me._

_Fondly,_

_Elisabeth Katharina Luise Marie Saltrian _

_Burgravine of Saltrianta and Froskburg_

Hermione read the letter again and smiled. It was so weird to write a letter like this to Dumbledore. He had always seemed to be ancient and wise to her. Gellert had introduced him to Elisabeth when they were still friends, and having her memories, Hermione knew another Albus Dumbledore now. Young and naive one.

"Take the letter to Hogwarts," she said to Barney. "To Albus Dumbledore."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **This story won't be long. And if you wonder about other stories, I'll continue them later, when I feel better.

* * *

**LEGACY OF SALTRIAN**

_by CreatorZorah_

**Chapter 3**

Elisabeth had gotten acquainted with death very early in life. She had been seven, when she had seen one of her friends die. It had been a terrifying experience and she hadn't told anyone about it. It was young Anne, a little girl from Saltrianta. The two girls sneaked out of the Saltrianta to explore the forest unaware of dangers. Once they heard a laughter, the two girls decided to look who it was.

Their little adventure turned into a nightmare, when Anne was caught by some weird creature. It looked a lot like an elf, almost as high as Anne. Out of fear Elisabeth froze unable to move. Her friend was crying for help, but Elisabeth couldn't do anything, her body wouldn't listen. It had taken the creature mere seconds to devour the little girl and then, fortunately for Elisabeth, the monster had walked away. Later Elisabeth had learned that it had been an erkling.

Ironically, that encounter had unlocked Elisabeth's powers much to happiness of her grandparents. She had begun to feel the Succubus Hunger and her grandmother began teaching her the art of the hunt. Much to Hermione's dismay that was her curse now. The man before her was the worst scum, a rapist and killer who escaped justice. She verified it using Legilimency. And still she felt horrible about taking his life. She had taken lots of lives on battlefields or in self-defence, but this time it was different. It was a cold-blooded murder. She could only justify it by convincing herself that he deserved it.

They were alone in a dark empty alley, nobody would witness it. Hermione knew that the man wouldn't be able to resist her. She didn't even need to utter a word as his lips moved to hers. And when they met, Hermione gave in to her Hunger, she began to suck the life out of her prey. The man didn't even try to struggle. Thanks to her powers he was happy to give her his life and soul, slowly turning into a withered mummy that fell lifelessly to the ground.

The Hunger was satisfied. The man's soul would be trapped inside of her until her death. Crying silently due to what she became, Hermione used an_ incendio_ to burn the corpse down to ashes.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore had seen a lot in his long life and it was difficult to surprise the man. However, one particular individual had managed to just do that. It was the woman, who opened the door to his office. Elisabeth Saltrian. Albus had been sure that she wouldn't wake up, but here she was, applying for the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts.

"You're old," she said without even greeting him as she stopped at the door.

"And you're still eluding the time," Albus said.

She smiled and walked to the bookshelves. "An interesting collection of books you have here." Elisabeth narrowed her eyes and wandlessly summoned a book. "Secrets of the Darkest Art. I can feel your essence on it."

Albus frowned. "I removed it from the library, because it's dangerous, Elsa."

"Of course," she said with a sly smile and sat at the table before him. "Where is your phoenix?"

"I doubt you would appreciate his presence."

"Who knows?" She took a sherbet' lemon from the bowl on the table. "Perhaps I would."

"You've still got a sweet tooth, it seems," he said with a smile. "I'm glad to see you despite everything."

"I'd be insulted otherwise, my young rebellious apprentice. Now, what about the post?"

He sighed. He knew that she could be a good teacher, but her past...

"I'm not sure I can allow you to teach children. Your teachings caused the global wizarding war."

"Albus, my teachings died with my family. I paid a great price for my mistakes. I still believe that we should stop living in the shadows, however, I'm done with revolutions."

Yes, she had paid a great price. Her whole family, almost a hundred wizards and witches, her siblings and cousins, her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren had died in the war she had caused. She deserved a chance. Besides, the closer he would keep her, the less problems she would cause. However there was another reason why he was hesitant to give her the post.

"Are you aware that the post is cursed?" he asked.

"That won't be a problem," she said casually.

Albus wondered what had made her so sure. He knew that she was a very powerful witch and her power was the main reason he was really considering her as a candidate. He could find good teachers, but he had to ensure they wouldn't keep the post for more than a year, unless he wanted to risk their lives. And there were only so many good teachers... Elisabeth on the other hand had every chance to be unaffected by the jinx on the post. But still, how could she be so sure?

"If you're sure, the post is yours, Elsa," he said. "Don't make me regret my decision, please."

"Thank you. I have a few requests, though."

"So soon?"

"I want Gryffindors to be paired with Slytherins in all Defence Against the Dark Arts classes."

"That's a bad idea, Elisabeth. "

"On contrary, it's time to end the stupid rivalry between the Houses before it causes another war."

His eyes widened slightly. "Well," he said with a smile. "It seems that even you can't hide from time completely after all."

She shrugged. "Furthermore, I will start a club of battle magic. Your school lacks this aspect of education. Professor Flitwick's help would be appreciated."

"The Ministry won't like it."

She rolled her eyes and offered, "A dueling club then."

"I'm sure Filius will be happy to help," he agreed easily. "But you should discuss it with him."

"That was my last request."

He nodded and handed her a few parchments. "The Ministry Approved Minimal Curriculum and Hogwarts School Laws and Guidances. You should provide the supply list by fifteenth July. It's a tradition for the staff to live in the castle, however, if you wish..."

Elisabeth smiled. "Don't worry about it, I'll live at Hogwarts."

* * *

The post at Hogwarts was hers, getting Sirius Black out of Azkaban was Hermione's next objective. And the best person to help her was the Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge. Fortunately it was very easy to arrange a meeting with him. Her name carried a lot of weight in the wizarding world.

"Lady Saltrian, a pleasure to meet you," the man said.

"Good day, Minister," Hermione greeted Fudge. The man was a fool, and it was easy to manipulate him, like any other fool. The main reason he was the Minister.

"A good day, indeed. My assistant said you wanted to talk about something," he said.

"Yes," she said looking at the bookshelf. It didn't contain anything interesting though. "A few days ago I was fighting the war and now it's so... peaceful."

"It must be difficult to adjust," he said. "But you're doing well, it seems. I heard you were given a teaching post at Hogwarts."

"My hope is to prevent another war by teaching young wizards and witches."

"A formidable goal," the Minister said. "You can trust me to support you in your efforts."

"Of course," she said with a smile. "And I'm sure that cooperation between the two of us can be very profitable for the Wizarding Britain."

His eyes gleamed with greed. "What do you propose, Lady Saltrian?"

"There are many things I'd like to discuss with you, but the most urgent matter is very complicated. I would be very grateful if help me," Hermione said using her innate talents to charm the Minister.

"Please tell me, how I can help you," he said eagerly.

"There is a man in Azkaban who was imprisoned by the previous administration without a trial. Wrongly, most likely. It could be very beneficial for your administration to correct the mistakes and show wizards and witches of Britain that you're a man of justice. A fair trial is all the poor prisoner of Azkaban needs. I would be proud to sponsor this noble deed, of course."

"And what is the name of the poor man?"

"Sirius Black," she said and before the Minister could argue, she continued, "Even if he's guilty, we both would yield benefits. As I said, the man only needs a fair trial. However, I have a strong conviction that Sirius Black is a victim, not a villain. And I'm ready to cover all expenses. Just let the Gringotts notify me about the amount of gold the Ministry would require and the _right _account where my gold should be transferred to."

"I will do all I can, Lady Saltrian," he said without a moment of hesitation.

* * *

Ron Weasley was a happy boy. The year had been wonderful, he had befriended Harry Potter, participated in an awesome adventure and even stopped Voldemort. Well, he had helped Harry to stop him, but without him, Harry wouldn't have done it anyway. He couldn't be considered worthless now in comparison to his brothers anymore.

He wondered why his mother called him to the living room and who was the guest she spoke of. Everyone was already gathered in the room when he entered. Obviously the guest was quite important for his mother to not reprimand him for taking too long to get here. Why did they even need him to be present?

Ron glanced at the guest and blushed. It was a very beautiful woman dressed in something of muggle origin. Witches normally didn't wear anything as revealing as her blue dress with hemline well above her knees. But a wand in her hand indicated that she was a witch.

He sat down in a chair and put Scabbers on his knees.

"Now," the woman said. "For those who don't know me, I'm Elisabeth Saltrian, the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."

Ron's eyes widened at the same time the twins exclaimed, "Wicked!" She didn't look old. Barely out of Hogwarts even.

"Our Ginny will start this year," his father said. "Ron will attend the second year, while Fred and George the fourth."

"I hope your children will enjoy my lessons," Saltrian said with a smile. "If they have some question, I'll be happy to help later. But I'm here on my personal business. You see, I heard that your family possesses a very interesting animal."

Ron blinked. They had some interesting animal? "What kind of animal?" he asked.

"The rat," she answered looking at Scabbers who froze at the words.

Ron gulped. He wasn't sure why, but he was terrified about the possibility of her looking at him the way she was glaring at the rat. For a moment he felt like facing Fluffy again, while the Cerberus was still awake. The woman was scary.

"But Scabbers is just a rat," his father said with confusion.

"A rat that lived for more than ten years is likely anything but just a rat," the woman explained. "If you allow me I'll conduct a very simple test, I'll prove that it's a very special rat."

Suddenly Scabber jumped off from his knees, but before he could touch the floor, Saltrian's spell slammed into the rat, stunning it and sending it flying to the floor before her. Ron blinked unable to comprehend what just happened, just like the rest of his family.

"Sorry about that," the guest said before anyone could react in any way. "But it seems I was right and the rat isn't what it seems to be. The rat is a wizard, an animagus."

And then the rat began to transform into some ugly dirty man.

"Peter Pettigrew," she said.

* * *

Hermione was looking at the old building hidden among the trees. It was old and dilapidated. Not that it had ever looked good. The shack represented the end of once proud, now dead family. The last member of the House of Gaunt died long ago in a flick of her wand, Hermione ignited Fiendfyre and sent it to the shack maintaining perfect control over the spell.

In her original body she would've never been able to do that, but Elisabeth's experience was now hers and her host's skills with fire spells were unrivaled. If not for a traitor who had cursed her in the back, she would have most likely burned down a half of the invading soldiers, before they'd have been able to reach the coast, all by herself. That would've guaranteed the defeat of allied forces. Both muggle and wizarding.

When she confirmed that the first Horcrux had been destroyed, she sat down onto a fallen tree not far from the burned down shack, and opened a paper case and began to sort through the documents.

_Certificate of Birth... Hermione Jean Granger._

_Mother: Jean Augusta Granger_

_Father: Edward Benjamin Granger_

_Certified copy of an entry of marriage... _

_14th July 1976. Edward Benjamin Granger and Jean Augusta Young_

Hermione didn't know know her grandparents well, they had died when she been very young. But she had to learn about her ancestry now.

_Certificate of Birth... Jean Augusta Young._

_Mother: Elizabeth Maria Young_

_Father: John Martin Young_

_Certified copy of an entry of marriage... _

_7th May 1953. John Martin Young and Elisabeth Katharina Luise Ida Maria von Brockenburg_

Hermione gasped. The squib daughter of her host's granddaughter. Hermione could barely believe that Elisabeth Saltrian was actually her ancestor, her great-great-great-grandmother.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **Enjoy!

* * *

**LEGACY OF SALTRIAN**

_by CreatorZorah_

**Chapter 4**

It was a warm summer day and the Granger family was happy to spend some time together. It had been difficult for the parents to be separated from their daughter for almost the whole year. They had been worried about Hermione, because she always had had problems befriending other kids. They had tried to help her, but they weren't very good at making friends either, and therefore couldn't really give their daughter an useful advice.

They were glad to see that Hermione seemed to be happy now. She made her first friends and they couldn't be more proud of her, when they saw her results after the first year. She was the top student. Regardless of the weird subjects. Unlike many other muggles they didn't fear her powers, on contrary they thought that she was lucky to live in the world full of adventures and mysteries.

Someone rang the doorbell. Edward walked to open the door. There was a young woman, maybe a teenager, or barely out of her teens, with long black hair and dark reddish eyes. There was something about her eyes that made Edward Granger tense up, they didn't match the youth of her face. There was something dangerous about the woman.

"You have great instincts, Mr Granger," she said with a smile. "Unlike most men who only see the pretty face."

He blinked taken by surprise with her words. "Excuse me?"

"I'm Elisabeth Saltrian, Hermione's new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts," she said. "May I enter?"

"Of course," he said letting her in. As she followed him to the living room, he asked, "Is something wrong?"

"No, your daughter is a wonderful student. I didn't have a chance to teach her yet, but I'm sure it will be a delightful experience for both of us."

Hermione and Jean were in the living room already, both had been reading books until the guest came.

"Hermione," he said. "We have a guest from Hogwarts."

That made her almost jump to her feet in surprise as she looked at Elisabeth Saltrian.

"Elisabeth Saltrian," the woman introduced herself to Hermione. "I'm your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."

"I'm so glad to meet you," Jean said using the chance to interact with someone from the world Hermione was a part of now. "Hermione didn't tell us that you would visit us."

"She couldn't know," Elisabeth answered as she sat down in the offered armchair. "I'm not in an official cpacity here. Truth be told, I'm here on family matter."

"Family matter?" Edward asked in surprise.

"To clear all possible misunderstandings, I'm not as young as it seems. Your daughter should know that some wizards and witches can get centuries old using various methods."

"Yes, we know," Jean said looking at Elisabeth curiously. "She told us about Nicolas Flamel."

"I hope it wouldn't come as a shock to tell you that I'm hundred eighty."

"Oh god, but you look so young!" Jean exclaimed. Then she blushed in embarrassment. "Excuse me, even with the warning I'm still shocked."

"Don't worry about it. I'm used to people reacting this way when they learn my true age," the witch said and looked Jean into the eyes. "May I ask you how much you know about your mother's family?"

The female dentist frowned, wondering why the witch was asking that. "Unfortunately, not much. She didn't share anything about her past with anyone. But I know that she was born in Germany."

"Do you know her birth name?"

Jean shook her head, answering, "Von Brockenburg. Why?"

"Elisabeth von Brockenburg was the third and youngest daughter of Dorothea von Brockenburg née Saltrian, who was my granddaughter."

Jean's eyes widened. "That makes you my great-great grandmother!"

* * *

Hermione looked around and sighed. Once again she would be living at Hogwarts. Her living space was rather nice. Dumbledore got sentimental and let her have three rooms, more than the most teacher normally had. He even lent her lots of books that were currently stuffed in the shelf. But in comparison to the room she had had at Durmstrang it lacked coziness.

She frowned as she realized that once again she thought about Elisabeth's past as if it were her own. As of late it was a common occurence and she had realized that her memories had been slowly merging. Now Elisabeth and Hermione weren't separate persons anymore, they were one and the same. Hermione was glad that at least her personality wasn't affected, not that Elisabeth was bad person, but she'd like to to not lose herself.

Hermione shook her head. She had to stop thinking about herself as Hermione. She was Elisabeth now. And she had to get used to it, otherwise she would make people suspicious by the lack of reaction at being called Elisabeth or Saltrian. Even worse, she could accidently introduce herself to someone as Hermione. That would be disastrous. From now on, she had a new life and a new identity. She was Elisabeth Saltrian.

"Thank you, Albus," she said with a smile. "It's perfect."

He raised an eyebrow, his eyes twinkled. "It surprises me greatly that I was able to satisfy your needs. I still remember all those times I and Gellert were running like headless chickens trying to find an acceptable accommodation for you at the Godrik's Hollow, when you were visiting."

"Time changes everything," she said.

"Yes and a war even more so," he agreed. She noticed that he was hesitating. "Do you... want to visit him?"

Elisabeth didn't need to be told who he was talking about. She didn't know if she wanted, but it seemed to be the right thing to do. It would look very strange if she wouldn't visit Gellert given the chance. All her newly gained influence probably wouldn't allow her to meet Grindelwald. It was a well known fact that she had been one of the most trusted advisors and a very loyal follower. No way she would be allowed to get anywhere near Grindelwald without Dumbledore's help.

"If you deem it possible, Albus."

"I'll try to arrange your visit." After a short pause he said suddenly, "There is one thing I wonder, Elsa."

"Yes?"

"Why did you bribe the Minister to get Sirius Black out of the prison?"

Elisabeth blinked not expecting the question. "Did I really? Or was that a donation? I wonder how do you know about my involvement."

"Ah, walls have ears, My Lady." He smiled, though it was a forced smile. "I fail to understand your motives. Alas I must admit that it was utterly short-sighted of me to not doubt his guilt. If it turns out he's indeed innocent..." Dumbledore shook his head.

"Understandable given the circumstances," she said. "Black didn't do it easy for himself. Besides, you're getting old."

"Some of us don't age so well as you, Elisabeth," he said, obviously barely holding back a smile. "But I assure you, there is still some strength in these old bones."

Elisabeth rolled her eyes. "You've never been humble. Don't overexert yourself, old man."

He sighed. "Kids these days, no respect for elders."

"Oh, I'm sorry, the elder one!" She burst out laughing.

"You're insufferable, Elsa. But nonetheless... would you like to join me for a dinner?"

"I'd love that, Albus."

* * *

It was middle of August, and a sunny day at that. Lucius wasn't surprised to find the Diagon Alley filled with witches and wizards, mostly children buying the supplies for the coming year at Hogwarts. Filthy Mudbloods here and there. He sneered at a young girl, who almost ran into him. Much to his surprise she held out an envelope.

"I was told to give it to you, sir," she said.

"Told by whom?" taking the envelope.

The girl shrugged and ran away. Wondering what this all meant, he opened the envelope and tried to take the letter out, when he felt a familiar tug of a portkey. His eyes widened at the realization, but he was too late to drop the letter. Lucius was ready to fight, but he hadn't got a chance as he was hit by a body-bind curse before he could even get out his wand. His face hit the ground painfully.

"Hello, dear Malfoy."

He couldn't move, but he could see a shadow of the person who spoke. The voice was female and it sounded familiar to him. He felt her hand searching his robes for something. Malfoy tried to move as his captor got the diary, he had intended to get rid off by slipping it to some young and stupid Hogwarts student.

"Thank you for bringing it to me, I'll make sure to destroy it," she said, turning him over.

It was Saltrian. He shivered. If there was someone really dangerous, it was the Burgravine. She lay down on him and despite his helpless position, he found himself enjoying the feeling of her body on top of him. His senses were screaming at him to do something, to get away, but even if he hadn't been bound by the spell, he wouldn't move. All Lucius could think of were her lips that were getting closer and closer.

And then her lips touched his. He sensed his life slipping away, but it didn't matter to him at the moment, it was the most blissful moment of his life, or, rather, he felt like it was. A minute later Lucius Malfoy was no more, his withered corpse was burned down along with the Horcrux by the hottest flames of Fiendfyre.

* * *

The Azkaban was anything but a nice place to spend the life. Soul-sucking Dementors, never-ending coldness and the worst memories playing again and again in the heads of the prisoners. Those with weak will break after spending a few weeks here, some people endure a few months without losing one's mind. Abandon all hope, ye who enter here. That's the motto of this place.

Sirius Black had spent years in the prison and still was sane... Most of the time. He didn't have any hope left though. His fate wasn't sealed, however. The door to his cell opened and two aurors stepped in.

"Get up, Black," one of them said. "The Ministry is finally giving you a proper trial."

A trial?! His eyes widened. This had to be a joke! They surely couldn't be serious. _But of course they aren't serious. I'm Sirius!_ He laughed earning worried glances from the aurors as they were leading him out of the prison. Why would they give him a chance to defend himself? They did believe that he was guilty! So, why? Not that he would look a gifted horse in the mouth, but he'd rather know, who he had to thank for this sudden turn on the curvy road of his life.

"Are you really innocent?" the other auror asked.

"Of course I am!" he exclaimed. "How is that you seem to think I am? Not that I've got anything against that. I mean, no-one believed me for dozen years!"

"Well, Salb... Sant... What was her..." tried to answer the auror.

"For Merlin's sake, shut up, Williams!" his fellow auror interrupted him. "Lady Saltrian got Peter Pettigrew and the arsehole testified that he had apparently framed you."

"He's alive?!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Hey, calm down..."

"I'll kill the bastard!"

"I can relate, Black, but you better not, otherwise you'll get back to your cell," said the auror, who wasn't Williams. "On the brighter side, he'll, most likely, get kissed after your trial."

"Serves him right," Sirius grunted. "Do you have something to chew on? I didn't eat a normal food for years!"


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:**

_Saltrian - nightshade ( plants. Nightshade family is known as potato family too :)) in Old High German._

_Frosk - frog (OHG)._

_Burg - castle._

_Brocken is a mountain in Germany._

_I'll call the older Hermione Elisabeth from now on, mostly because it would be very confusing for you otherwise :)_

* * *

**LEGACY OF SALTRIAN**

_by CreatorZorah_

**Chapter 5**

It was a strange summer and, probably, the happiest in Harry's life after all he hadn't had to spend his time with Dursleys. Instead he had lived with Weasleys. But before he had had a chance to get jealous about anything, suddenly his own family had appeared out of nowhere. His Godfather. Sirius Black. They hadn't had much time to spend together. Sirius had to stay at St. Mungo's to recover his health after spending years in the nightmarish prison.

Then there was that infernal house-elf Dobby, who had almost turned a bad summer into a nightmare if not for the Weasleys. Thankfully the elf had promised to not bother him anymore, since there was no imminent danger for the 'great Harry Potter' anymore. Harry wondered if there had been any danger at all or the elf was just delusional.

And then there was Hermione. She had written that she would meet them at Diagon Alley, but then a day later she had apologized, because the plans had changed. Since then neither he nor Ron had received any notice from her. They had even worried if she would come back to Hogwarts at all. The fact that Hedwig had failed to deliver letters to her hadn't soothed their worries.

"Ah, there you are!" he heard a familiar voice and smiled at the girl who entered their compartment.

"Hermione!" he and Ron exclaimed at the same time.

But then he noticed her appearance and his eyes widened. Gone were her bushy hair and buck teeth. Her hair was perfectly tamed, it looked very nice, her smile was perfect as well. Neither had he missed that she wasn't dressed as a muggle. Though it didn't look like something British witches wore, he had lived long enough in the muggle world to know that her outfit would stand out there.

"We were worried," he said helping her to get the trunk to the luggage rack. "We tried to send a letter with Hedwig, but she failed to deliver it."

"Where were you?" Ron asked.

"In Germany," she said, obviously, excited at the chance to tell the story. "Did you know that wizards live completely separated from muggles there? They have noble families ruling over wizarding towns..."

"Whoa, slow down, Hermione," Harry interrupted her. "What are you talking about?"

"You were in the Wizarding Germany?" Ron asked.

Hermione blushed. "Yes," she said and continued enthusiastically, "It's amazing! It's so different! They don't have the same prejudice against Muggle-borns as here."

"Really?" Harry asked.

She frowned. "Yeah, but they do look down on low-borns though. But I'm, well, a noble, and I didn't even notice it until I was told."

Harry looked at her in confusion. "Noble?" he asked at the same time with Ron.

She reddened again. "I guess, I should explain it properly," she said with a sigh. "My great-great-great-grandmother visited me..."

"Wait, how many 'greats' was that?" Ron asked.

"Three, Ron," she answered. "She's a witch and older than Professor Dumbledore."

"Blimey, she's ancient," Ron muttered.

"But she looks very young but refuses to tell me how, though," Hermione said with disappointment. "She fought in the Global wizarding war on the Grindelwald's side..."

"What?!" Ron exclaimed. "She must be a dark witch then!"

"Well," Hermione said with a hint of hesitation. "I wouldn't say it like this. I read about those times and asked her question. She was reluctant to share anything about her past, but she told me some things. She had an idea of the greater good, the world where muggles and magic people would live together utilizing both magic and technology. Though she believed that wizards were superior to muggles, it wasn't the way, well, Malfoy looks at muggles. She had er... a scientific view on it that actually makes sense... partly. Wizards and witches can do everything muggles do, but not other way around. Ah and she's our new DADA teacher, by the way."

Ron went pale. "That scary lady?!"

"You know her?" Hermione asked in confusion.

"Yeah," the redhead answered. "She revealed that my rat wasn't a rat, it was a man. Scabbers was Peter Pettigrew!"

Hermione knew the details of the story already, but Hermione, apparently not. "It was Scabbers all the time?! You slept with a Death Eater! Ew!"

All three of them turned green at that.

"I read about Sirius Black... Is he really your Godfather?" Hermione asked.

"He is," Harry answered with a smile. "But we didn't spend much time together. He's still recovering from the time in Azkaban."

"How is he?"

"Good, I guess, for someone who spent so much time in that place."

"Some people would go insane after weeks there," Hermione said with worry.

"Yeah, but Sirius managed to protect his mind," Harry said. "He's an animagus that can turn into a large dog. Dogs are less affected by Dementors... Don't tell anyone about it, though. He's unregistered."

"What? But it's illegal!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Hermione, if he'd been registred he wouldn't be sane right now," Harry pointed out, a little frustrated by his female friend.

She blushed and muttered, "You're right. I'm sorry."

As no one said anything, Harry decided to break the suddenly awkward silence and asked, "So, what about your great-great-great-grandmother?"

"Oh... Right. She told me about my family and took me to Germany. It was amazing! I had a choice to join one of the noble families there. Either von Brockenburg or the Saltrians. I have a few cousins in the former family, but they weren't as nice as Lady Elisabeth. I could stay Granger as well, but I chose the Saltrians in the end. Lady Elisabeth, my great-great-great-grandma, made me Burgravine of Froskburg. In title only though, I'm not of age to rule yet and Lady Elisabeth is the regent. Though both our towns are governed by the Town Councils right now, because she's at Hogwarts."

"What's a burgravine?" Ron asked.

"It's a title that indicates that I'm a member of the german wizarding nobility and have a town to rule. I'm one of the nine burgraves of the Wizarding Germany. Lady Elisabeth is the ruler of the largest town with more than fifteen thousand wizards and witches living there. And if you include magical creatures like Veelas, Goblins or Vampires, then it's be way more than thirty thousand. It's the most magical place I've ever seen!"

"It's situated at the top of a huge waterfall and there are lots of beautiful bridges that cross the river," Hermione continued. "Can you imagine? They hid the river half as large as Nile from muggles. Saltrianta is so beautiful, looks like something out of a fantasy book!"

Harry looked at her in amazement. He wished he could see the town with his own eyes. He had never seen Hermione this excited and he could really understand why. The way she was describing the place, the town had to be amazing. He sighed. He had never been out of England, except Hogwarts, of course.

He wondered if Sirius would take him somewhere else, perhaps even this Saltrianta. Hell, he would be happy to see more of Wizarding Britain too. Hogwarts and Diagon Alley was all he had seen so far, and it had to be more! And he wished to see it. But would Sirius want to bother with him?

There was another thing. Sure, he was very happy for Hermione, but how would her newly found wizarding family affect their friendship? He didn't have many friends... or rather he had only two true friends and one of them was Hermione. What if she would go to Germany permanently? On the other hand this Lady Saltrain would teach them at Hogwarts...

"My name isn't even Hermione Granger anymore. I'm Hermione Saltrian, Lady of Froskburg," she continued blushing. "Compared to Saltrianta, the main seat of House of Saltrian, Froskburg is very small. But still it's frightening to be responsible for several thousand witches and wizards who live in Froskburg."

"Wicked," Ron said.

"As a Burgravine, I'm, well, untraceable for security reasons. I can't lift the charm until I'm of age. On the brighter side, I can't be caught for using magic outside of the school."

"That's unfair!" Ron exclaimed.

"Honestly, Ron, it doesn't mean that I'm allowed. It's just they can't trace me. That's why Hedwig couldn't find me." She looked at the cage with the owl and smiled. "Sorry, Hedwig."

"Do they have a school like Hogwarts?" Harry asked.

"Er... not like Hogwarts," Hermione answered. "Some children study abroad at Durmstrang, or Beauxbatons. But the majority go to the inland academies. And the academies are very unlike Hogwarts. They don't teach potions at the Saltrian Academy for instance. Lower nobility has to study in Germany. Each major town has one. Froskburg has one too. Every witch and wizard studying there has to swear a magical oath to serve the Lord or Lady of the town. The quarter of my town's population are the vassals of the Lady."

"But you are one," Harry said, his eyes widened in realization.

"Yeah," she said, clearly uncomfortable with the idea. "It's scary, but I have more than thousand wizards and witches under my command should there be a war."

"That's all good, but what did you learn about Quidditch in Germany?" the redhead asked, obviously tired of hearing to the explanations.

Hermione blinked. "Boys! Always think about your brooms!"

Harry snickered, covering his face with hands, and muttered, "Hermione..."

Suddenly her face brightened and she jumped off her seat and dragged her trunk down. Harry smiled as Ron muttered something under his breath about her mental health. Hermione opened her trunk and got... a cane? But no, it was way too long to be a cane. He wondered briefly how this one and a half meter long whatever it was could fit in her trunk. Hermione then turned around to face them with the cane in her hands and Harry realized that it was a staff with a large glowing stone at the top.

"It's a wizard's staff!" Hermione announced.

"I thought that they weren't in the use for ages," Ron said.

"Here in Britain," Hermione explained, "But people still use staves. Wands do the most work for us and we can learn faster through incantations and wand movements. The staves are much more difficult to master, because one have to maintain perfect control over one's power to do magic with them." Then with a sigh, she added, "Lady Elisabeth said that it's useless and I don't have to waste my time like this, but I still want to master it."

"You're mental, Hermione," Ron said. "Why would you need to master a staff if you can do the same thing with your wand?"

_Because it looked awesome,_ was Harry's thought, but he knew that Hermione would learn how to use it for the sake of learning. Her many-greats-grandmother was, probably, right, but he knew that it was utterly useless to dissuade Hermione from learning something new. He wondered how many books about staves she had in her trunk...

Hermione huffed and sat down.

* * *

_A/N: The chapter was somehow difficult to write :) And I'm a bit disappointed that Hermione/Elisabeth didn't make an appearance in the chapter :)_


	6. Chapter 6

**LEGACY OF SALTRIAN**

_by CreatorZorah_

**Chapter 6**

Barnabas the Barmy, the fool, who got that genial idea to teach trolls to dance. That was what the tapestry, Elisabeth was looking at, depicted. She was walking past the entrance to the Room of Requirement thinking about the Room of Hidden Things. Sometimes people were doing such stupid things that she had to wonder if they and monkeys were as different as humans believed.

She sighed and entered the Room of Hidden Things. It took her a few minutes to find the Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem and destroy it with a perfectly controlled Fiendfyre. One Horcrux less to worry about. But the remaining two were the most difficult to destroy. Somehow she had to get access to the Lestrange family vault at Gringotts. That meant that she had to bribe goblins, break into the bank or break some Lestrange out of the Azkaban.

Another Goblin rebellion was the last thing she wanted, so a break in was out of question. She could attempt to bribe some goblins, but she doubted that it would work. Besides the attempt would make them suspicious. Therefore she would break out a Lestrange. Unless Bellatrix was a lesbian, or at least bisexual, she wouldn't be affected by Elisabeth's innate charms. Hopefully Rodolphus wasn't gay then.

Breaking out someone out of the Azkaban wasn't a difficult thing for her. If Voldemort could do it, she would do it easily. She had a beautiful collection of souls to share and being a succubus Elisabeth wouldn't be affected by dementors. These creatures wouldn't even consider to refuse her, they were way too eager to consume souls.

The second one was even more difficult. There was no spell that could safely extract the piece of Voldemort's soul from the scar. However, she could use her ability to suck the piece out. She would have to kiss him on his lips and quite passionately though. That would be very awkward. Besides Elisabeth knew there was a chance she would eat him.

She could minimize the risk by consuming enough life force and souls to completely satisfy her hunger before that. Elisabeth had theorized that a Killing Curse would do the same thing and there were other options too, but kissing him was the safest option of all. That could wait though. Firstly, she had to make him trust her.

Now, however, it was the time to go to the class. She walked through the hallways to the classroom and entered it a minute too late. The second years were already in there waiting for her. As a succubus it was a pleasure to feel the students casting amorous glances at her. Mostly males, but a few females too. It was very easy for her to maintain order in the classroom.

"Good morning, everyone," she said taking her time to look at the students.

Everyone looked the same as she remembered, except Malfoy. His hair wasn't brushed, the eyes were red, probably, of crying. Elisabeth felt almost bad about killing Lucius, but she knew that the Death Eater didn't deserve to live. During the First War he had killed lots of innocents and just a few weeks ago he had tried to kill Ginny and endanger other students by giving her the diary. No, the bastard had to die.

"As you most likely know my name is Elisabeth Saltrian and for the next six years I'll be your Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Today we'll handle the organizational matters, but before we start, I'd like to ask if anyone has any questions."

Of course, there were questions. The students were mostly interested in who she was and where she was from. Elisabeth had nothing against satisfying their curiosity. She didn't tell the details, but she explained that she was older than she looked, had fought in the Global Wizarding War and had taught at the Durmstrang.

"Right then," she said after a few minutes. "What do you think is the most important thing about Defence?"

Elisabeth almost rolled her eyes when she saw Hermione's hand shooting in the air. The girl seemed to be very eager to answer. Had she really looked like this?

"What do you think, Miss Granger?" Elisabeth wasn't sure if Hermione had told anyone about her new name and she didn't want to make the choice for her.

"I believe it's knowledge."

"It is important indeed. Mr. Nott?"

"Power."

"Of course it is important," Elisabeth agreed. "But nothing is more important than teamwork. Without a reliable partner to watch one's back, even the most powerful and knowledgeable one will be defeated. However the life is unpredictable and you may find yourself in the situation where you're forced to work along with people you know little about, or worse, with people you prefer to stay away from."

Elisabeth enlarged two urns, she had prepared for the lesson, and placed them onto the table before her. Inside were small numbered balls. One for each student in the classroom.

"I want each of you to take one ball from the urns," she continued. "Gryffindors from the right urn, Slytherins from the left one. Then you return back to your seats."

The students did what she had asked and returned back to their seats, utterly confused about the whole thing, In the muggle world the students would just get random balls. In the wizarding world there were no coincidences. Numbers had power.

"The two students who got the balls with the number one, please stand up," Elisabeth said and looked at the pair, writing the names on the parchment before her. "Parvati Patil and Draco Malfoy. Don't try to cheat, I'm watching. Number two. Ronald Weasley and Pansy Parkinson."

Elisabeth wondered if that would ever work. "The three students with the number three. Dean Thomas, Theodore Nott and Millicent Bullstrode. Number four. Lavender Brown and Gregory Goyle. Number five. Hermione Granger and Blaise Zabini."

Not a bad pair for Hermione. "Number six. Harry Potter and Daphne Greengrass." Elisabeth looked at Harry, then at Daphne. A smile crept up on her face.

"Number seven," Elisabeth called. "Neville Longbottom and Tracey Davis. Number eight. Seamus Finnigan and Vincent Crabbe."

Elisabeth wrote down the last two names and looked up at the students who were now even more confused.

"You will earn grades and House Points as a team, you will write essays as a team and you will learn spells as a team. You will success as a team or you will fail as a team. However, don't even think that you may slack off and let your partner do all the work. If you're unable to answer my question, despite your team's assignment graded with an Outstanding, the team receives a Troll. From now on and till the fifth year your teams won't change, but your teams will work together on various assignments."

"But I don't want to be in the team with Parkinson!" Ron yelled.

"As if I want to do anything with you, Weasel!" Pansy shouted back.

"Silence! Ten points from both of you," Elisabeth interrupted the bickerings that were about to explode. "You will have to put aside your House rivalries and preferences. As I said, life is unpredictable and to protect yourself you have to learn to work with people you don't like. Yes, Miss Granger?"

"But what if the partner won't do anything and the team fails because of him?" Hermione asked.

"You have to talk to your partner, persuading him to do something useful. In extreme cases I'll be forced to dissolve non-functioning teams, but the student won't like the consequences. I'll do everything to expel the student from Hogwarts. Miss Davis?"

"Does that mean earning House Points in this class is useless?" the red-haired girl asked.

"Of course not. Don't forget about Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws," Elisabeth answered. "Does anyone have other questions?" She waited for the answers, then said, "Good. By the end of the term the best team will receive a valuable gift from me."

"Furthermore," she continued. "I've got a few announcements to make. Starting the next week there'll be a Dueling Club. It's an optional part of the Defence Against the Dark Arts and will be graded as such if you choose to participate. If you do, you have to participate as a team. Your prefects will receive detailed information about the club, don't hesitate to ask them."

"That aside I'm sponsoring new extra-curricular classes approved by the Ministry. The classes aren't related to the Defence Against the Dark Arts per se, but taking them will help you to avoid dangerous situations. The Study of Magical Cultures will focus mostly on the cultures of various Magical Beings and Beasts which include humans, goblins, merfolk, centaurs, vampires, veelas, elves and others. The second class is the Wizarding Geography. You will be able to learn about foreign countries and politics. Both are two-years subjects. I advise every muggle-born student to take these classes. Does anyone have any questions?"

* * *

Harry Potter was standing at the entrance to the library uncertain if he really had to go further. From his experience he knew that it was foolish to expect something good from Slytherins. Yet he was in the same 'team' with a Slytherin girl now and the said girl had told him to meet her in the library. He had wanted to argue, but she had ignored him. The problem was he couldn't ignore Greengrass, because they had to do the assignment together. Both of them had to be able to present the assignment in the classroom.

He walked to the table where the familiar blond girl was reading some book. He sat down at the table across her and looked at her waiting patiently for her to notice him. Not because he was arrogant like many believed, but out of his shyness. He wasn't sure how to talk to her, he hadn't had experience of starting a conversation, especially with beautiful girls like Greengrass.

"How long do you plan to sit there like a statue?" the girl asked without taking her eyes of the book. "How about saying 'hello' or 'good evening'?"

Harry blushed. "You look like you're doing something extremely important, didn't want to disturb you."

She looked at him with her grey narrowed eyes. "Great. Just like I thought you wouldn't consider our assignment important enough. You know, I'm not happy about this whole matter, but I won't allow you to drag me down with you. I swear, if you're going to slack off, I'll curse you into the next year."

Harry wondered if he said something wrong, or this outburst was just a girl thing. "I didn't even consider slacking off. And I do believe that our assignment is important."

The girl huffed, glaring at him. "Then it wasn't a sarcasm, was it?"

Harry furrowed his brow. "I'm not sure what you're talking about."

She sighed. "Forget it... It was foolish of me to think that you're capable of sarcasm. Just take a book from the list and start reading. If you find something interesting, please, tell me, otherwise just take notes."

Harry looked at the large heap of books and asked, "Which one?"

She shrugged. "Does it matter? We have to go through all of them anyway."

"Er... all of them?" he muttered. The heap was even larger than a Hermione's usual one.

"We have to search all these books through to find useful information for our assignment. And don't forget to take notes. You didn't forget to bring parchment and quills, right?"

"Y-yes," Harry said.

"Good," she said, her attention was already back on the book. "I propose we do the potions and transfiguration together to avoid wasting time. This DADA assignment is very interesting, but time-consuming."

"Do you really have to be rude?"

The girl raised her head and looked at him with surprise. "Rude? It's you who didn't even consider greeting me."

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry for not greeting you. It won't happen again."

"You're making fun of me, aren't you?"

"I'm not!" Harry hissed. "Why do you always search for hidden meanings? I'm just telling you that I'm sorry."

Greengrass glared at him for a few seconds and then sighed. "I'm a bit paranoid, forgive me. Let's stop wasting our time then."

"Sure," Harry said.

"What are you waiting for then?"


End file.
